


vita est donum sub image (life is a gift under a mask)

by green_onion_04



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Empath Bang Chan, Introvert Kim Seungmin, Kim Seungmin-centric, M/M, Mentioned Day6 Ensemble, Pianist Kim Seungmin, Rich Hwang Hyunjin, Seer Kim Seungmin, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-23
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:54:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 16,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27158927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/green_onion_04/pseuds/green_onion_04
Summary: Seungmin is living in the wrong side of the world. He should be hidden away, never to witness the crowds of the city first-hand until he turns 25. Instead, he finds himself struggling to make it through college, especially due to his slightly cute roommate's bunch of friends.Will Seungmin keep his secret hidden from everyone? Or will it get out, and put people in danger, including himself?
Relationships: Bang Chan/Lee Minho | Lee Know, Han Jisung | Han & Hwang Hyunjin, Han Jisung | Han/Hwang Hyunjin, Kim Seungmin & Lee Felix, Kim Seungmin/Lee Felix
Comments: 11
Kudos: 72





	1. iacere - to lie

**Author's Note:**

> hello everyone! this is my very first fic so like... yeah.  
> thank you for clicking on this, I appreciate it a ton!  
> I take latin at my school, so I am putting that hard work into this fic
> 
> Anima Flamma = Soul Flame

_ You must not fail, _ Seungmin told himself. He had repeated this mantra every second of the days leading up to his seventh birthday. Seungmin remembers the day the government came to his house. He was only seven at the time, a mere child with no idea of the impact this visit would have on his life.

Three sharp knocks sounded at the front door, and Seungmin’s mom got up from the dinner table to answer the door. Seungmin’s father would’ve answered it, if he weren’t away at work.

“Hello, is the residence of Kim Seungmin?” Hearing his name, Seungmin looks up from his food, noticing the two men dressed in slick black suits. His mother nodded, looking nervous, and let the two men in.

“Seungmin, come here and greet the gentlemen,” his mother told him gently. Seungmin hopped off of his chair, and made his way over to the living room, where the two men awkwardly sat on the couch. Their demeanor is out of place in the warm aesthetic of the room, like two splotches of black on a white canvas. Seungmin’s mother beckoned him over to one of the plush armchairs next to the couch, and took a seat on one as well. She was fidgeting nervously. 

“Hi,” Seungmin said, anxious. He always picked up on his mother’s emotions quickly. He started fidgeting with the hem of his blue and white striped shirt as both of the men turned their gazes upon him.

“Hello Kim Seungmin, my name is Lee Taemin and this here is my acquaintance, Choi Minho,” The man named Minho smiled, but it didn’t reach his dark brown eyes. “We are here to conduct the EAA, the Experiment for Abnormal Abilities,” at Seungmin’s confused stare, Taemin sighed, like he had to explain this to every person he came across. “It is a test to determine if you are a Seer.”

Seungmin perked up. He had only heard whispers of this test. The kids who had taken the test already refused to talk about it, choosing to ignore any questions about it, no matter how persistent the other kids were. Of course, they would ignore them. If they had passed the test, they wouldn’t be at the local school anyway.

Noticing that Seungmin stayed quiet, Taemin took this as a sign to continue talking, “It won’t take long, only a minute or so. All you need to do is hold Minho’s hands,” he glanced at Minho, who nodded softly. Minho then stood up, made his way over to where Seungmin was sitting in the armchair, and crouched down with both hands outstretched. Seungmin hesitantly glanced over at his mom, who gave him an encouraging nod. She looked hopeful, and Seungmin took a deep breath, determined to make his mother proud. He placed his hands on top of Minho’s, looking minuscule in comparison.

Seungmin didn’t know what to do next, so he closed his eyes, wishing with his small 7-year-old heart that he was a Seer, so he could make his mother and father proud of him. After what seemed like an eternity of deafening silence, Minho pulled his hands away, and looking at Taemin, shook his head. The two men exchanged a look of pity, and Taemin turned to Seungmin’s mother, who had already guessed the result.

“Ma'am, I'm sorry, but your son has not passed the EAA.” The words were dropped so suddenly, Seungmin could almost believe he didn’t hear them. Not passed? He  _ had _ to pass, to make his parents proud. Glancing over at his mom, the devastation was apparent on her face, as she nodded tersely. The two men, Taemin and Minho, took this as their cue to leave, and they get up and make their way to the front door. Taemin opens the door for Minho, the slightly taller man stepping through the doorway. Taemin looks back at Seungmin, giving him a small smile, then says goodbye to Seungmin’s mother. He steps out the door and closes it behind him.

The silence is back. Seungmin normally doesn’t mind the silence, but he can feel the disappointed gaze of his mother boring into him. He can’t help but feel like he did something wrong, like it was his fault he wasn’t a Seer. He gets up and makes his way across the room to the piano. 

The piano is his best friend. It never ceases to calm him down, and he unloads all his feelings into the music. He has been praised for his ability to make the music sound so alive, and many called him a prodigy. Seungmin was proud of this, but he wanted to be proud of being a Seer.  _ At least my parents can be proud of me for something _ , he thought as he mindlessly played a song on the piano.

Eventually Seungmin grew sleepy, and said goodnight to his mother, who looked exhausted. He made his way upstairs, got ready for bed, and laid down, not wanting to think about tomorrow.

The next day at school, the kids didn’t bother him. They could tell how moody he was, and they tended to leave him alone anyways. Seungmin didn’t mind. He came home to notice that his father had left work early and bought cupcakes for the family to celebrate Seungmin’s birthday. As he blew out the candle, Seungmin could tell his father did it out of pity.

The next day, Saturday, Seungmin came down the stairs to eat breakfast. Greeting his mother, he looked up and stopped straight in his tracks.

Why was he able to see a light indigo flame lightly pulsing above his mother’s head?


	2. sedecim - sixteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seungmin is visited on his 16th birthday to officially get his Anima Flamma registered. The only problem is, he doesn't have one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Thank you for clicking on this, it means a lot to me!  
> Just a quick reminder, this chapter is still in the past, so hold on until we reach the present!  
> I do use Latin vocabulary for an important term in this story, so make sure you know what it means!
> 
> Anima Flamma - Soul Flame

Seungmin made his way upstairs to his bedroom. He still didn’t have an explanation for why he was able to see Animae Flammae. Ever since he had woken up that day, he had always seen them. They were above every person, twisting themselves into beautiful shapes, never staying still. Seungmin often compared them to puppies, because they both had endless energy. It took time, but he had to train himself to not stare at them openly.

He also had a journal filled with all of his observations and drawings on Animae Flammae. He recorded all of his findings and often spent hours trying to come up with theories. He hadn’t gotten the proper education of a Seer, so he had to figure everything out on his own. Seungmin never let anybody see this journal, for the fear that they might report him to the government.

Observation #1: The kids at school had much brighter Animae Flammae than the teachers. This led Seungmin to the conclusion that your Anima Flamma had more energy as a child, and grew slightly dimmer when you aged.

Observation #2: Animals did not have Animae Flammae. Seungmin noticed this when he went to the zoo for a field trip, and noticed it from then on.

Observation #3: Your Anima Flamma started flickering when close to death, and went out completely when you died. Seungmin, sadly, witnessed this first hand at his grandmother’s passing when he was 10. Her navy blue Flamma, streaked with hints of sky blue, had flickered rapidly before going out completely as she let out her last breath.

Observation #4: Seungmin couldn’t see his own Anima Flamma. Every time he passed a reflection of himself, he glanced over it, seeing if he could view his own Anima Flamma. Over and over, he had no such luck. He only saw his face, his light brown hair and eyes looking back at him.

Observation #5: There was a hierarchy when it came to Animae Flammae. You could take a class in high school or college to learn more about the hierarchy. Everybody knew that your Anima Flamma determined how well you would do in life, and everyone had to visit a Seer when they turned 16 to get their Anima Flamma registered.

Seungmin was visited by a Seer on his 16th birthday, and he remembers that day all too well.

Seungmin was playing the piano when he heard three sharp knocks at his door. Getting a sense of deja vu, he stood up and opened the door. There stood Lee Taemin and Choi Minho. Seungmin offhandedly noticed that now that he wasn’t so short, the two men didn’t look as imposing.

“Hello, is this the residence of Kim Seungmin?” Taemin asked, smiling softly. Seungmin dumbly nodded and let the two men in. He motioned for them to sit on the same couch, and he sat in the same plush armchair. They still looked out of place in their suits.

Another thing Seungmin noticed was that they also had no Animae Flammae. Did that mean he wasn’t the only abnormality? Did all Seer have no Anima Flamma?

“We are supposed to read your Anima Flamma and record it in the registry, but I think we all know that you have somehow become a Seer.” Taemin said. Seungmin nodded, tensing up. “We won’t report you to the government, don’t worry,” Minho reassured, and Seungmin released a breath of air.

“Do all Seers have no Anima Flamma?” At their nods, he excused himself, and rushed up the stairs to his room, and hidden in his closet, he grabbed his journal and a pen and rushed back down. He sat down and started writing once he found a clean page close to the back. Once he had finished fervently writing for a few short minutes, he looked up. “What will we do, since I have no Anima Flamma?”

“I could possibly see if I can remember your Anima Flamma color, from when we came to administer the EAA test,” Minho suggested, and Seungmin nodded, and jotted down another note. While Minho was thinking, Seungmin turned to Taemin.

“Has there ever been a case of a Seer being a late bloomer, other than me?” Taemin shook his head. “Do Seers have more abilities than just seeing Animae Flammae?”

“There haven’t been any official reports, but there are rumors that some Seers can feel people’s emotions,” Seungmin raised his eyebrows. Seers being empaths?

“Are there cases of normal people being an empath?” Taemin nodded. Seungmin continued to write.

“Seungmin, I believe your Anima Flamma color was a soft red-gold,” Minho said, after what seemed an eternity. Taemin took out a formal-looking document and wrote some things down, and looked at Seungmin.

“All you have to do is sign right here,” Taemin pointed to a line near the bottom. “And we will be on our way.” Seungmin took the document and signed his name at the bottom. He handed the document back, and Taemin and Minho stood up, making their way to the door.

“Goodbye, Seungmin. I hope we meet again,” Taemin smiled, and left the house. Seungmin sat there for a while longer, and then went over to the piano and resumed playing the piano. When his mother came home from grocery shopping, he told her his Anima Flamma color, and she patted his back, smiling.

Seungmin went to bed feeling guiltier than ever. He hated lying to his parents.


	3. incepere - to start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seungmin, our resident introvert, goes to college and meets his dormmate Felix, our resident extrovert.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back everybody! We are now in the present story!  
> I hope you all have had a great morning/afternoon/evening so far! And if you haven't, that's alright too!  
> This will be the last time I mention this, but I do use Latin vocabulary for an important term in this story.
> 
> Anima Flamma - Soul Flame

Seungmin didn’t know what to expect coming into the city and he should have prepared himself for all of the contrasting colors of the Animae Flammae. There were just so  _ many, _ he almost felt a headache coming on. He had gotten off his train and was following directions to his university. Seungmin reached the front gate, and stared up at the large buildings, feeling a thrill of excitement rush through him.

University. A beast that had loomed behind Seungmin during high school, and caused many semi-pointless nights spent tossing and turning in bed, worrying about his future. He had never felt the amount of relief ever again when he finally received an acceptance letter.

Seungmin located the dorms, remembering them from when he took a campus tour. A guy named Taehyung was leading it, if he recalls correctly. Seungmin makes his way to the dorms, not staying long enough to truly appreciate the beauty of the grounds.

Seungmin enters the dorm building, and fishes an envelope containing his dorm information out of his backpack. He pulls out the paper and scans the text, looking for the number of his dorm. He finds out it’s on the fourth floor, room 419.

He makes his way up the stairs, passing several people heading back downstairs, and finally reaches the fourth floor. The hallway was filled with doors, some open, some closed. People were making their way in and out, rushing around, trying to get everything set up. Seungmin carefully maneuvered his way to near the end of the hallway, where his dorm, number 419, was.

As soon as he reached the door, he was met with a door sign that said,  _ Authorized personnel only here! _ , with caution tape lining the edges. Seungmin groaned internally, and prepared himself for entering. He was most likely paired with an extrovert.

Not that he had anything against extroverts. They made great company, and always knew how to keep things lively. However, some of them did not know what personal space meant, and others didn’t have an off switch to their energy. Seungmin braced himself for the worst, and he unlocked the door with his key and opened it.

Seungmin stepped over the threshold, heard some scuffling noises before a young male peeked his head out of a doorway, and grinned brightly. He skipped down the short hallway, and gave Seungmin a hug, a quick squeeze, before backing up a little with the largest smile Seungmin had ever seen on a person.

The male was slightly shorter than Seungmin, and had soft-looking blonde hair. He also noticed the multitude of freckles scattered across his cheeks, and his Anima Flamma, an electric blue with black streaks, bouncing lightly along with the male.

“Hello there! I’m Felix, your roommate!” The male said cheerfully, giggling, and Seungmin had a double take.  _ Holy fuck, his voice is deep.  _ Seungmin quickly got to his bearings, and smiled back.

“Hello, I’m Seungmin. Very nice to meet you,” Seungmin managed in the politest voice he could muster, trying not to get annoyed at the hug, which  _ clearly _ invaded his personal space.

“Come on, I’ll give you a dorm tour! I’ve already been here for a few hours, so I explored the place!” Felix led Seungmin down the hallway and first pointed out the living room, to the right, and the kitchen, to the left. He then showed Seungmin the bathroom, and his bedroom, and finally, Seungmin’s bedroom.

“I let you have the bedroom with the small couch instead of the armchair, because I figured you might need it more than me,” Felix said, and Seungmin smiled. 

“Thank you Felix, I really appreciate the kindness,” Seungmin smiled genuinely. He glanced back at his suitcases sitting by the door. “I should probably get unpacked.” He made his way to the suitcases, and began moving them to his room.

“Could I possibly help?” Came the voice of Felix. Seungmin cursed inwardly.  _ Damn extroverts and their all too helpful tendencies. _

“Sorry Felix, but I would like to do this by myself,” Seungmin immediately felt bad as he noticed Felix’s expression morph into something a little less joyful. Seungmin wanted to punch himself. However, he kept his expression neutral as he began to unpack his personal belongings. He heard Felix shuffle off, and music started to play from another room. He recognised the medley and started to hum along. 

Not too long after, probably 45 minutes, Seungmin finished unpacking and flopped onto his bed. He laid there before listening to make sure the music was still playing, and pulled his sketchbook of Animae Flammae out from his closet and sat down on the couch with his colored pencils and started to sketch out Felix’s Anima Flamma.  _ It is a nice addition to my collection, _ he mused, as he tried to find the right placement of the black streaks.

He noticed the music had stopped, and he placed down the sketchbook and got up just as Felix poked his head through the open doorway. He looked around Seungmin’s room, and Seungmin swears he saw Felix smile a little wider when looking at his shelves, where he carefully arranged his Day6 albums, courtesy of Wonpil, his cousin.

“I was wondering if you would be okay with instant ramen for supper,” Felix said smiling, and Seungmin nodded. He would probably be eating a lot of it now that he wasn’t living at home with his parents. “Also I noticed your Day6 albums,” Felix added a little giggle.

“Yeah, my cousin Wonpil is in the band, so he’s given me an album each time they release one,” Seungmin said, smiling as he remembered how he always protested when Wonpil had brought him one.  _ “Come on, Seungmin! I’m your cousin, let me spoil you a little bit!” Wonpil said, placing the album in Seungmin’s hands. _ Felix’s eyes bugged out, and he took a dramatic gasp.

“Kim Wonpil is your cousin?” At Seungmin’s nod, Felix did a little happy dance. “Oh my goodness, could you introduce me to him?” Seungmin was a little caught off guard.

“I can ask and see if he’d be okay with it,” Seungmin said. He hadn’t texted Wonpil in a while, and he should do so soon. Seungmin would never tell Wonpil, but he really missed his cousin. They used to hang out every weekend as kids, and if Seungmin had to choose one person to tell his secret to, it would be Wonpil.

Felix walked out of Seungmin’s room, and Seungmin carefully put his sketchbook away, before following the blonde male to the kitchen. Felix started making instant ramen as Seungmin sat at the kitchen table, pulling out his phone and clicking on the messaging app. He clicked on the contact that said ‘annoying cousin,’ and typed out a text.

**person i tolerate (2)**

**Seungminnie <3**

hey wonpil-hyung, how are you doing?

Seungmin placed his phone down, not bothering to wait and see if the reply was instantaneous. He started watching Felix’s Anima Flamma, grateful that Felix was distracted. It moved a lot more fluidly than other Animae Flammae Seungmin had studied. It still sparked and jumped like others, and the black streaks started at the base and flickered their way up, before dissolving into sparks with the electric blue. His phone buzzed, startling Seungmin out of his reverie, and he picked it up.

**person i tolerate (2)**

**annoying cousin**

hi seungminnie! i’m doing well, we are just wrapping up promotions!

what’s up?

**Seungminnie <3**

nothing much, I had just finished unpacking for college

and my roommate apparently is a myday

**annoying cousin**

really? that’s cool!

you are displaying those albums I got you, right?

**Seungminnie <3**

yes, wonpil-hyung. I had to put them up for fear you would hit me if i didn’t put them up

because i know how much you love surprise visits

**annoying cousin**

you know me too well

anyways, i gotta go! dowoon says hi!

**Seungminnie <3**

bye hyung! tell dowoon-hyung i say hello too!

**annoying cousin**

bye bye seungminnie <3

**Seungminnie <3**

<3

Seungmin placed his phone down, sighing. He disliked being able to talk to Wonpil through short texts and the odd phone calls. However, it was a small price to pay for his cousin’s happiness. He was doing what he had always wanted to do, and that made Seungmin happy.

Wonpil had always been in Seungmin’s life, ever since he was young. Wonpil was practically his brother, and even though he had only met the rest of Day6 in person twice, he considered them family as well. Wonpil had been the one to teach Seungmin piano, and Seungmin was eternally grateful for that.

Seungmin’s thoughts were interrupted by Felix placing a bowl of steaming instant ramen in front of him. Felix took the spot opposite of him and sat down with his own steaming bowl. They both started eating, and Seungmin felt a heaviness settle down between them.  _ He’s going to start asking the ‘Get to Know you’ questions, _ Seungmin inwardly sighed. He waited for a few minutes, waiting for the questions to drop. They never came, and Felix placed his bowl in the sink, bidding Seungmin a good night with a smile.

Seungmin washed the dishes, and grabbed a stack of Post-It’s he had left on the counter, and wrote his phone number on one, and a small grocery list (because they can’t eat instant ramen every day) on another. He stuck both to the fridge and retreated to his room for the night.

Once in his room, Seungmin continued his drawing of Felix’s Anima Flamma, plugging in his earbuds and turning the volume to a not healthy level. He finished the drawing in the early hours of the morning, sighing when he looked at his clock. He put his things away, and got ready for bed.

Laying down underneath the covers of his bed, Seungmin thought about how he used to play piano after supper, when he was at his parents’ house. That seemed like an eternity ago, he mused, rolling over to find a more comfortable position. As he nodded off to sleep, he imagined playing a medley on the piano, and his fingers unknowingly tapped along to the rhythm.

That night, Seungmin dreams of stargazing with Wonpil, staring up at the multitude of stars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, and welcome to the end notes!  
> I wish you all an amazing day, and if you aren't having a good one, that's alright! We all have our fair share of bad days.  
> Stay safe and see you all next chapter!


	4. invenire - to find

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seungmin meets Jisung, although not under the best circumstances, explores the campus and finds a piano, which is nice, and has an Awkward Gay Moment. University has started out phenomenally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back!! I just want to say thank you for all of the kudos, it means a ton to me and keeps me motivated!  
> I wrote half of this yesterday, lol...
> 
> Anima Flamma - Soul Flame

Seungmin wakes up the next morning to someone gently shaking his shoulder. He blinks a few times, trying to come to his senses. He sits up and notices it was Felix who was shaking his shoulder. The blonde had a smile on his face, and despite his gentle movements, seemed to be brimming with energy.

“Seungmin, could I invite my friend over for lunch?” Felix asked in a soft voice. Seungmin nodded, and then groaned when he saw the time. He had only slept for a few hours. He laid back down and pulled the covers back up, trying to keep out the morning cold.

Seungmin distinctly heard Felix leave his room and close his door. The faint noises of movement in the other room faded away as Seungmin once again succumbed to the gentle grasp of sleep’s fingers.

When he wakes up for a second time, it is to a loud shout, followed by laughter. Seungmin sits up, and blinks, feeling much more rested. There is another shout, and Seungmin grows slightly worried. He gets up, putting his glasses on, and getting dressed. He then heads out to the kitchen, where the shouting was occurring.

“Good morning, Seungmin!” Felix said cheerfully, from where he was standing by the counter next to a male with black hair currently chugging a glass of milk, face bright red. His dark brown and white Anima Flamma was flickering agitatedly.  _ That must be Jisung, _ Seungmin thought as he grabbed a glass of water and sipped on it.

“Morning, Felix,” Seungmin said, looking around at the various items on the counter. He noticed different types of peppers in a pile on one side, and some were cut up on a cutting board. He also noticed a blender, garlic, salt, apple cider vinegar, honey, and a pot of something on the stove. There were also a lineup of jars on the counter, around six of them.

“Do you wanna try some hot sauces?” Felix asked, seemingly ignoring Jisung, who had poured himself another glass of milk, and was still red in the face. “Binnie-hyung dared Jisungie to make a hot sauce for their rap group, 3RACHA! And Jisung came to me for help, and he’s now taste testing them!” Felix finished with a grin, and a flourish towards Jisung, who looked a little less red in the face. Jisung waved at Seungmin with a grin that  _ almost _ rivaled Felix’s.

“I think I’ll pass on taste testing, I’m not really a hot sauce person,” Seungmin admitted. He technically wasn’t lying, he only liked certain hot sauces. Besides, Jisung looked like his tongue had been through hell and back, and Seungmin did not want to experience that. He finished his glass of water, and made his way back to his room, where he grabbed his phone, wallet, and a light jacket. Seungmin walked back to the kitchen, and stopped by the front door, putting on his shoes.

“Where are you going, Seungminnie?” Felix asked, and Seungmin froze momentarily.  _ Seungminnie? Where did that come from? _ He shook himself out of his flustered stupor, and glanced over at Felix, who had a confused expression on his face, and Jisung, who was glancing between the two.

“I’m going to walk around the campus and get a feel for where everything is,” Seungmin said with (what he hoped was) a reassuring smile. “I shouldn't be gone for too long, and I put my number on the fridge if you need to contact me.”

“Okay… Just stay safe!” Felix responded with a tight smile. Seungmin stepped out the door, and closing it behind him, made his way to the stairs.

Heading down the stairs and out onto the campus left Seungmin alone with his thoughts, both a blessing and a curse. He was always left in his thoughts as a kid, and has learned how to push aside the negative thoughts into a small corner, locked away.

His mind wandered to his parents as Seungmin made his way out of the staircase. He had never been that close with his father, who was away at work. They had also grown more distant after it was revealed that he wasn’t a Seer. The look of disappointment on his father’s face was enough to tell Seungmin what he needed to know. His father never spent too much one-on-one time with him after that, him busy with work and Seungmin with school.

Seungmin’s mother was a different case. Sure, she was also upset Sungmin wasn’t a Seer, but that’s how parents worked. His mother was a teacher at Seungmin’s preschool, and Seungmin had grown used to seeing her all of the time. Seungmin and his mother had a nice parent-child relationship. They got along, didn’t have too many arguments, and Seungmin helped out around the house without complaint. He often heard his mother bragging about how Seungmin was the ‘perfect child,’ on top of grades and never complaining.

That changed when Seungmin told them he wanted to go to college for photography. Both of his parents were upset, expecting him to go into business or engineering. Seungmin briefly remembers the heated words he and his parents exchanged that fateful day. He shook his head, putting that thought into the pocket of his mind.

Seungmin stopped in the middle of the path, examining the greenery. It was not yet autumn, but he could feel the cool air sneaking its way into the mildly warm weather. He resumed walking, heading towards the Performing Arts building. His phone buzzed, and he pulled it out, looking at the notification.

**annoying cousin**

I’m coming to visit Saturday! be prepared :)

Seungmin smiled at his phone, quickly typing out a response to his cousin, Wonpil, giving him his dorm information.  _ It’ll be nice to have him over and get my mind off of things, _ Seungmin thought, putting his phone back in his pocket as he reached the building. He opened the door and stepped inside, looking down the hallways. He chose one at random, seeing where it would take him. The classrooms he passed by had instrument lockers, and Seungmin figured he was in the performance wing. His thoughts were interrupted by a door opening, and voices, obscured by the classroom door before, now audible. Seungmin braced himself for the worst, as three males came into view.

Two of them seemed to be messing with the third one, who looked quite pissed. The male being bothered had an Anima Flamma of orange with navy, and his chestnut brown hair was slightly tousled. A taller male who had black hair with a blonde patch was partially hanging onto the brown-haired male, his vivid red Anima Flamma practically jumping around. The third male, shorter than the other two, had a light lavender hair color, and his Anima Flamma was a steadily pulsing mint green with a gold highlight.

“San, get  _ off _ of me,” The brown-haired male grumbled, pushing San, the black-haired male, off of him and onto the ground. The lavender-haired male laughed loudly, and San pouted.

“Jongho, that was mean,” San said, getting up and attaching himself to Jongho once again. Jongho grumbled some more, but didn’t try to push San off again.

“Wooyoung, why did we have to bring San with us?” Jongho asked the third male, who had stopped laughing.

“Because San is a better singer than me, and we both want to spend quality time with you,” Wooyoung said, and San nooded from where his head was on Jongho’s shoulder. Their voices faded down the hallway as Seungmin walked past them.

Seungmin looked at the side hallway the three males had come from, and before he could possibly chicken out, walked down it. At the end was a door, the room inside dark. Seungmin opened the door carefully, expecting it to squeak, but it opened soundlessly. He stepped inside, locating the light switch and flipping it on.

It was a medium sized room, and a stack of chairs pushed to the back. A piano sat on one wall, and Seungmin hesitantly walked towards it, and sat on the bench. He rested his fingers on the keys and hesitantly played a scale. The piano seemed to be in tune, and so Seungmin started playing a song.

He didn’t realize he had been playing for almost half an hour until his phone buzzed. Seungmin was shook out of his reverie, and grabbing his phone, looked at the notification.

**unknown number**

Hey Seungmin! It’s Felix, your roommate! Just wanted to let you know we’re getting pizza for dinner, and I’ll try to save you some!

Seungmin opened up the message and named the contact,  **“Felix”**

**roomies! (2)**

**Seungminnie!**

Hello, Felix! I’ll be back at the dorm soon

**Felix**

okay! :)

Seungmin put his phone away, and stood up from the piano. He made his way out of the room, turning the light off after him. He made a mental note of the room’s location, and made his way back to the dorms.

-

Seungmin opened the door to his dorm, and was met by Felix holding a box of pizza above his head and Jisung chasing him around. He momentarily froze, then shrugged and began taking off his shoes.

“Seungmin, help me! Jisung is trying to take the pizza I saved for you!” Felix cried out, frantically running behind Seungmin with the pizza box. Seungmin turned to face Jisung, and fixed him with the most intimidating stare he could muster. Apparently it was enough to stop Jisung right in his tracks, and Seungmin took the pizza box from Felix and set it on the counter.

“Nobody’s eating my pizza,” he said, smiling a little at the both of them. They looked at one another, and Jisung tried to tackle Felix, who yelped and ran away. Seungmin shook his head softly, watching the two mess around.  _ I’ll never understand how extroverts have so much energy,  _ he mused.

They eventually settled down, Jisung showing Felix some nature videos on his phone. Seungmin had made himself some hot cocoa (and extra for Felix and Jisung,) and sat down on the second couch. He pulled out a sketchbook (not the one with the Anima Flamma, of course,) and began drawing idly. He wasn’t paying too much attention to what he was drawing, until Felix peeked at what he was drawing and remarked, “Seungmin, I didn’t know you were so good at drawing!”

Seungmin started, looking at Felix who was now sitting next to him, Jisung dozing off on the other sofa. He looked down at his drawing, which was of the large tree on the school campus. He felt a flush of pride in his chest at the compliment, and Seungmin smiled lightly.

“Thank you, Felix,” Seungmin said, meeting the male’s eyes. He noticed the hints of a lighter brown color in them, and unconsciously leaned in a little to get a closer look. All of the sudden, his ringtone of  _ Dance Dance _ started blaring, startling Seungmin out of his stupor. His cheeks flushed red and he looked away from Felix, who was probably just as red, and answered the phone.

“Hello?”

_ “Hi, Seungminnie!” _ Wonpil’s bright voice called out, and Seungmin smiled.

“Hey, Wonpil-hyung, what’s up?” Seungmin glanced over at Felix, whose eyes had gone wide. Seungmin inwardly grinned.

_ “Just wanted to ask if you have enough food for me when I come over,”  _ Wonpil said cheerfully, and Seungmin groaned, getting up and heading to his room.

“Are you really going to make me get a ton of food just for you?” Seungmin said, whining a little, and Wonpil laughed. Seungmin sat down on his bed.

_ “Maybe… I’ll get you some candy if you get me food for a day,”  _ Wonpil bargained.

“You’ve got a deal,” Seungmin decided, and Wonpil laughed on the other end of the line. There was a small commotion on his side of the call, and a voice called out,  _ “Hello Seungminnie!” _ before the voice was hushed. Seungmin laughed.

“Hi, Dowoon-hyung,” Seungmin said, smiling. There was another scuffle heard, and then Wonpil calling out  _ “Get back here, you punk!”  _ and more laughter.

_ “I wish I could see you again in person, Seungminnie!”  _ Dowoon said,  _ “I’m totally going to find a way to get you front row tickets when we next come to your area!”  _

“That’s really nice of you, Dowoon-hyung,” Seungmin said genuinely. He heard Dowoon shout out, and who he assumed was Wonpil took back the phone.

_ “Sorry about that Minnie,”  _ Wonpil said,  _ “Anyways, I should be staying for lunch and dinner on Saturday, and be out of your hair that evening. Sounds good?”  _ Seungmin hummed in confirmation, and they exchanged goodbyes and hung up.

Seungmin flopped back onto the bed, staring up at the bland white ceiling. He briefly wondered what it would look like if it were pitch black with constellations painted on.

He has a hard time falling asleep later that night, a certain freckled male interrupting his thoughts.


	5. (Felix POV) trepidans - in a panic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felix's POV  
> Felix tries to get to know his seemingly mysterious roommate Seungmin, but how can he multitask getting to know him and being gay at the same time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We get Felix's POV this time folks! (ew why did I say that) idk what else this chapter is about, I just threw stuff together. (god I'm a mess)  
> Anyways, I'm sorry for not posting sooner. I was away this weekend and didn't have time to finish writing.  
> I hope you all have been having a better time than me, and I wish you all an amazing day!  
> I really appreciate the kudos, bookmarks, and comments! They mean a lot and keep me motivated!

Felix woke up twenty minutes before his alarm was supposed to go off. He sat up quickly, looking at his new and slightly unfamiliar surroundings.  _ You’re just in your dorm room, Felix. Calm down. _ He took deep breaths, calming down before getting up and ready for the day.

Stifling a yawn as he shuffled into the kitchen, Felix looked at his phone, noting that Jisung had messaged their group chat. He grabbed some bread and eggs while opening the message app, smiling softly.

**the hoemies (7)**

**ayo noona**

_ @the Tree,  _ hangout at your house this afternoon?

**the Tree**

sure, if you don’t break any more lights

**ayo noona**

it was one time!!

also it was technically lixie’s fault

**yEET**

how was it my fault?

last time I remember, you hit the light with the pillow

**ayo noona**

you started the pillow fight!

**human dad**

calm down, children

it happened one time

**the Tree**

but we have no idea if sungie would do it again!

**cat dad**

so are we going to your place tonight?

**smol child**

finally, minho-hyung has a good idea

**cat dad**

thank you, innie

**the Tree**

yes, we can hang out at my place tonight

come over at 6, the door will be open

**yEET**

i’ll bring chips

**ayo noona**

I got the dip

**human dad**

see you all at 6!

**binnie**

what did i miss?

I just got off my shift

Felix put his phone down on the counter, making sure the eggs didn’t burn. He scrambled them successfully (one of the few things he could cook properly) and placed them on a plate along with a piece of toast. He sat at the table and took a bite of the eggs, sighing at the warmth they brought to fight off the morning chilliness. He took another bite while scrolling through his social media, smiling when he saw a post that Hyunjin had posted with all of them at the beach they had gone to last weekend.

A light pattering of feet entered the kitchen, and Felix looked up, smiling. Seungmin walked into the room, looking like he had just woken up.

“Good morning, Seungmin!” Felix said, and Seungmin looked at him with a small smile. He walked over to the fridge, where he grabbed the chocolate milk and poured himself a glass, and grabbed a few pieces of toast and sat down at the table.

“My cousin Wonpil is coming over tomorrow, and he said he’d be okay with you staying at the dorm, as long as you don’t call the paparazzi or anything. Just don’t really butt into our business and you should be good.” Seungmin said quickly, and Felix blinked.  _ That must have been the most he talked to me, _ he thought, before realizing,  _ wait, Wonpil? _ He grinned immediately, and nodded.

“I would never do that to your cousin, Seungminnie, don’t worry!” Felix said, the nickname slipping out of his mouth before he could stop it. Seungmin’s face morphed into something unreadable, and Felix internally panicked.  _ Shit, I shouldn’t have said that. Now I’ve screwed everything up- _

“That’s good. I’m glad you’re not a jerk who would use this situation to their advantage,” Seungmin said, poking at a piece of toast. Felix blinked again.  _ Was that a compliment? I think so.  _ He quickly finished his breakfast, and after putting his dishes in the sink, sat back down across from Seungmin.

“So, when’s your birthday?” Felix said before he could stop himself. Seungmin looked up from his food, obviously expecting the question.

“September 22nd,” he replied simply, and resumed eating his food. Felix quickly opened up the calendar app and added Seungmin’s birthday in.

“That makes me older than you!” At Seungmin’s slightly startled face, Felix quickly added, “You don’t have to call me hyung. Our birthdays are too close together and it would sound weird.”

“When’s your birthday?” Seungmin asked, intrigued.

“September 15th,” Felix said, “Jisung’s is the day before mine. He might be a bitch and try to have you call him hyung, but if you don’t want to, I can talk to him.” Felix paused, thinking up another question. “Ooh, if you could wish for one thing, what would it be?”

Seungmin took a little longer to respond, obviously thinking hard about the question. “I would want happiness for those who deserve it.” He said simply.

“Hmm, what makes you laugh the most?” Felix asked.

“When cats fail to jump across a gap,” Seungmin said, a smile creeping on his face.

“Do you like cats in general?” Seungmin nodded, “Oh, Minho-hyung would have a blast with you! He has three cats on his own, and the only things on his camera roll are himself, Chan-hyung, his cats, and other cats. And a few pictures of the rest of us,” He added with a laugh.

“How many people are in your group of friends?” Seungmin asked, and Felix smiled.

“There’s seven of us altogether. Chan-hyung’s the oldest, he’s kind of like a parental figure. Stops us from committing arson and stuff. Minho-hyung is dating Chan, and they’re both juniors. Changbin-hyung dresses in all black, because he has achromatopsia and it’s easy for him to dress in one color. Hyunjin-hyung is in the same year as us, born in March. He loves dancing, and kinda keeps to himself. You’ve met Jisung already, he’s loud and obnoxious, but we somehow keep him around. And Jeongin is a freshman like us, except he’s a year younger than us and super smart. He acts like he hates us, but deep inside, his heart is full of love.”

“That’s a lot to take in,” Seungmin said, blinking a few times. Felix laughed a little in response.

“Hyunjin introduced us to one another. I had known him, Chan, and Jisung before. I knew Hyunjin from our dance class in high school, and me and Jisung were deskmates our freshman year of high school. I think I was closest with Chan-hyung, though. He’s helped me out a lot,” Felix explained.

Seungmin watched him attentively, then got up to place his dishes in the sink. He went and sat down on the couch, and patted the spot next to him. “Sit,” he said. Felix made his way over to the couch, flopping down next to Seungmin, and ignored the rush in his chest when his hand unintentionally touched Seungmin’s.  _ No time to be gay, Felix. You have to befriend your roommate first. _

“So, why didn’t your parents come help you move in?” Felix asked idly, playing with his bracelet. He internally slapped himself when he realized how intrusive the question was. “Shit, I’m sorry, that was intrusive. You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to-”

“It’s okay.” Seungmin said quietly. “My parents and I didn’t agree on my college choice,” and Felix frowned slightly. “But it’s not that big of a deal, we weren’t the closest,” Seungmin added. “What about you?”

Felix’s breath caught in his chest, and he froze up.  _ Breathe, Felix, breathe, _ he told himself. He smiled at Seungmin, and responded, “I don’t associate with them anymore.”

“Oh,” was all Seungmin said, and the two fell into silence. Slightly awkward silence, but not too bad. An eternity later, Seungmin asked, “So are your friends like your family?”

Felix smiled fondly, and nodded. “Yeah, they’ve helped me out a lot.” He tried not to notice the way Seungmin’s eyes analyzed his face, seemingly looking at every detail. They fell back into silence, and with that silence came thinking. Felix sighed a little, falling into memories.

-

_ 14-year old Felix sat on the beach, right where the waves would wash over his feet. He stared at the sun setting, drying the tears on his cheeks. The sun was pretty. Maybe one day he could fly away into the sunset, and forget all of his worries. No learning a new language, or having to leave behind all of his friends. No more fights with his sisters, or having to hide from his parent’s disapproving glare. _

_ Sometimes, Felix wanted to yell at his parents, tell them he was done following their standards and was going to run off to a family who would accept him for who he was. The only problem was, he didn’t have a family to run off to. _

_ A light pattering of footsteps neared Felix, and a boy with dark brown hair sat next to him, not looking at Felix. Felix looked at him, wondering why he came to the beach at this time. He looked not too much older than Felix himself, maybe a year or two. _

_ “The sunset is nice, isn’t it?” The boy spoke in English, with an  _ Australian _ accent, of all things, and Felix had a double take. _

_ “Wai-wait, you know English?” Felix spoke excitedly, nearly jumping up with happiness. The boy looked at him, smiling. _

_ “It’s not too hard to find foreigners, once you know where to look,” the boy explained. “I’m Chan, or Chris, if you prefer.” _

_ “I’m Felix, or Yongbok,” Felix struggled with his Korean name, still stumbling over the pronunciation. “I prefer Felix, but my parents want me to start using Yongbok more often even though I don’t like it and it’s so damn hard to pronounce, especially in the morning when I just wake up-” _

_ “Slow down, Felix,” Chan laughed, “You’re rambling.” Felix allowed himself a smile, and looked back at the water wistfully. The sun had set completely, and the chill had started to set in. Felix shivered a little, knowing it was time to head back to the dull, cold place his family called ‘home.’ _

_ “When did you come here?” Felix asked, trying to stall time before he had to leave. The English flowed from his lips, and Felix was never happier to have someone other than his family to talk to in his native language. They would always press him into using Korean more often, saying that it was time he let English become a part of his past. _

_ “I’ve been in Korea for three years now,” Chan responded, glancing at the waves. “It’s pretty hard to leave everything behind, right?” Felix nodded, completely understanding. “Did your family move here recently?” _

_ “Yeah, we came a few weeks ago. In the middle of the school year too. I don’t really understand why, but I guess I’m too young to understand.” Felix sighed, flopping back onto the warm sand. The sky was darkening, and he caught sight of a few stars. He really should get home. _

_ “As much as I would say don’t go home, I think you should.” Chan said, standing. “I’ll still hang out here, if you want to talk again,” He held his hand out, and Felix took it, getting up. _

_ They parted ways and when Felix got home, the scolding he got from his parents wasn’t too bad for the fun he had at that beach. _

-

“Do you think I have an accent?” Felix asked, shaking himself from the memory. Seungmin looked at him curiously, then looked away when Felix met his eyes, his ears going red at the tips.  _ So that’s what he looks like when he gets embarrassed,  _ Felix mused.

“Not really. Sometimes there’s a hint of one, but it’s pretty hard to notice unless you listen closely.” Seungmin said. “Why? Are you not from here?”

“Yeah, I came from Australia eight years ago,” Felix explained. Seungmin nodded, as if it made sense in some way. He smiled a little mischievously.

_ “So, does that mean you understand me?”  _ Seungmin said slowly in accented English (but not too badly accented), and Felix would have choked on his drink if he had one.

_ “Wait, how do you know English?” _ Felix asked, slipping into his native language.

_ “I lived in LA for a few months when I was younger, and Wonpil-hyung practiced his English with me,”  _ Seungmin explained. He then switched back to Korean. “I’m not totally fluent in English, so when I try speaking, my mind is a jumble of both languages and it sort of hurts my head.”

Felix nodded in sympathy. “It was like that for me when I first moved here,” He said, recalling memories. His and Seungmin’s phones buzzed at the same time, and they both picked them up.

**the hoemies (7)**

**the Tree**

who’s staying the night?

**smol child**

me

the freshman are a little much

**binnie**

poor Innie

at least his roommate didn’t eat his snacks

I’ll be staying over as well

**cat dad**

me and Chan will pass

and Changbinnie

I will get you all the snacks you could want

**ayo noona**

I will only stay the night if lixie does

I dont trust mr. hwang hyunjin

He’s going to kill me in my sleep one day

**yEET**

I may stay the night, lemme ask my roomie

sungie, i keep telling you

jinnie-hyung would never do something like that

**the Tree**

thank you felix!

Felix looked up at Seungmin, the latter with a small smile gracing his face. Felix felt a slight pang of  _ something  _ in his chest, and he frowned before willing the feeling away.  _ What was that?  _ He asked himself before putting on a grin and tapping Seungmin’s knee. Seungmin looked up, the smile vanishing and a questioning look replacing it.

“Hey, Seungmin, would you rather me be out of the dorm when Wonpil comes over? I don’t want to make him or you uncomfortable,” Felix said, and Seungmin smiled. Gosh, that smile did something to Felix’s heart, and he wasn’t sure if he liked it or not.

“I would appreciate that,” Seungmin said, “But I don’t want you to feel like I’m kicking you out,” he added as an afterthought.

“It’s alright, I was planning to stay the night at a friend’s house and possibly the next day with them as well.” Felix reassuringly smiled, and Seungmin matched it.

“Well, if you don’t feel too bad about it, I would appreciate the privacy,” Seungmin said with relief.

“It’s completely fine! Don’t worry too much about it!” Felix grinned, and the tips of Seungmin’s ears went red again. Felix got up, and made his way to his room, where he packed whatever he might need for staying at Hyunjin’s house.  _ You should probably let them know you’re staying the night,  _ he reminded himself, and pulled out his phone.

**the hoemies (7)**

**ayo noona**

_ @yEET,  _ you going to answer or disappear off the face of the earth again?

**binnie**

sungie, don’t bring back those memories

Felix froze at the message Jisung had sent, a hurricane of emotions and memories sweeping him off his feet.

-

_ Felix pressed himself against the corner of the bathroom stall, hoping they wouldn’t find him there. They never looked here anyways. _

-

_ “‘Lix, you know you can tell us about anything, okay?” Changbin said, the rest of their friends trying to get into the small room. _

-

_ The dark road was all that Felix could see. No end to it, just a never ending black strip. He ran, not caring where he was going. His phone, left behind where he had fallen. _

-

_ Felix somehow always made his way back to the ocean. He grew up with it, and when he moved to Korea it became his safe place, and now… It loomed before him, as dark as the night. _

-

_ “Felix!” A voice cried out, and Felix whipped around, focusing on that voice and forgetting the situation he was in. He caught sight of Minho’s face before something hit his head, and he crumpled to the ground. _

-

Felix gasped for breath, trying to stop the flow of memories he had packed away behind a dam. He successfully shut them out, and managed to calm down the heavy beating of his heart.  _ When did I fall to the ground?  _ Felix asked himself, and shakily got up. He picked up his phone from where it lay on the ground, and sat on the edge of his bed.

**the hoemies (7)**

**_ayo noona_ ** _ has deleted a message _

**_binnie_ ** _ has deleted a message _

**ayo noona**

_ @yEET,  _ you coming or not?

Felix paused before answering, his thumbs hovering above the keyboard.  _ I know he didn’t mean to do that, but do I tell Jisung I saw that text?  _ Felix wondered.  _ No, he would just get hurt. _

**yEET**

jesus, sung, you really don’t know how to wait

yes, i’ll stay the night

**ayo noona**

yes!

**the Tree**

why did you only come if felix said yes, if you wanted to come so bad

**ayo noona**

i’m afraid that information is Confidential

**smol child**

i know why :)

**ayo noona**

if you say a word, jeongin

just remember i know where your precious textbooks are

**smol child**

and my mouth is sealed

**binnie**

alright, see you all soon!

Felix smiled softly. He really loved his friends, they were his family and safe place. He finished packing, and made his way to the door.

“Goodbye, Seungminnie!” Felix smiled, too distracted to notice the nickname slipping out. He didn’t even wait for Seungmin’s response, he closed the door and quickly strode down the stairs. He only had one thought.

_ If they’re your safe place, where will you go when you have problems about them? _


	6. confidere - to trust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seungmin's cousin, Wonpil, comes over to visit, and Seungmin tells him a very secret secret. Felix and Seungmin end up going stargazing!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey everybody! It's been a while, and I apologize. These chapters are getting longer, and that means more time taken writing them. I may start updating weekly (since I practically do that) but I'm not totally sure. I really enjoyed writing this chapter, and I hope you enjoy it. Again, thank you for the kudos! It keeps me motivated! Have a wonderful day/night!
> 
> Anima Flamma - Soul Flame

Seungmin woke up to knocking on a door. He groaned, stretching out and falling off of… the couch? Seungmin hit the ground with a thud, and groaned again. His sketchbook laid on the floor next to him, a colored pencil still in his hand.  _ Thank goodness I didn’t mess up my drawing,  _ he thought briefly before gathering up his supplies.

“Seungminnie~” A voice called out from the front door. Seungmin jumped out of his skin, dropping his sketchbook, flopping open when it hit the floor.

“Shit!” He cried out, and a laugh was heard from the front door. Seungmin grumbled to himself, picking up the sketchbook and opening the door. “I thought it would be you. You’re the only person to do that to me,” Seungmin said disapprovingly.

“Aw, come on Minnie! I know you missed me!” Kim Wonpil, Seungmin’s cousin, stood in the doorway, obviously grinning underneath the mask he wore. His black hair was hidden by a beanie, and maroon-colored Anima Flamma bounced excitedly.  _ You could just tell him, you know,  _ a voice inside Seungmin said,  _ He would support you no matter what.  _ Seungmin grasped his sketchbook a little tighter to his chest.

Seungmin let his cousin inside, closing the door behind him. “So, what are you going to torture me about today?” He asked, fixing his cousin with a look as Wonpil sat on the couch Seungmin was sleeping on not even five minutes ago.

“I would never bother you about anything! Besides, I brought you candy, so you could be a little more grateful to be in my presence.” Wonpil huffed, holding up a plastic bag full with what Seungmin could only assume were candies.

“Fine,” Seungmin sighed. “But let me change into different clothes first. You woke me up.” He set his sketchbook and colored pencils on the coffee table, then headed to his bedroom, where he quickly put on sweatpants and a hoodie.

Seungmin walked back into the room, and what he saw made his blood run cold. Wonpil was flipping through his sketchbook that had his drawings of  _ Anima Flamma. _ Wonpil looked up at Seungmin from where he was standing, and held up a drawing of a familiar-looking maroon Anima Flamma, and raised an eyebrow.

“I think you have something to tell me, Minnie,” Wonpil said seriously. Seungmin froze.  _ He’s found out, shit. What do I do, what do I do, what do I- _

“Come here, Seungmin.” Wonpil interrupted Seungmin’s panicked thoughts, patting the seat on the couch next to him. Seungmin reluctantly sat down next to him, hugging his knees to his chest.  _ He’s going to scream at you, call you a monster. They’re going to take you away and you’ll never see him again- _

“Why didn’t you tell me, Minnie?” Wonpil asked softly. “It would’ve been so much easier for you, and you know I would keep it a secret.” he pulled Seungmin into a hug. “I would never tell anybody, Seungmin. You should know that.” Seungmin sniffed, not even noticing that he had started to cry. He swiped at his eyes with the sleeve of his sweatshirt.

“I didn’t know how you would react, Wonpil-hyung. And if you had told the government, they would’ve taken me away, never to see you again. A-and I don’t know what happens when they take you away, and I haven’t seen any other Seers in person so I imagined the worst-” Seungmin broke off as a sob tore itself from his throat. Wonpil hugged him tighter.

“I’m sorry, Minnie. I shouldn't have reacted that way.” Wonpil whispered. “Could you tell me how you found out?” Seungmin nodded, gathering his composure a little.

“When the Seers came during my 7th birthday, they told me I wasn’t a Seer. When Seers come to judge you, they activate your Anima Flamma. It turns out I did have an Anima Flamma, but the next day I was able to see Animae Flammae. I don’t know what happened. I’ve always been able to see them from that moment onward. I was also never able to see my own Anima Flamma after that day.” Seungmin took a breath, collecting his thoughts.

“The Seers came again when I turned 16 years old, and the first thing I noticed was that they also had no Animae Flammae. Turns out, Seers do not have Animae Flammae. They also said they would keep my existence as a Seer a secret, not wanting to tear me away from the life I already had set up. Another thing I had to do on my own was figure out how Animae Flammae connect to the people themselves and their role in society.”

“Is that why we need to register our Anima Flamma when we turn 16?” Wonpil asked, and Seungmin nodded.

“They can’t register your Anima Flamma right away, because it hasn’t matured enough. And I believe the reason it’s so important is because the color reflects your best qualities. For example, your Anima Flamma is a maroon color,” Seungmin gestured towards the sketchbook, where the drawing of Wonpil’s Anima Flamma was open. “Meaning your best qualities are passion and ambition. At least, that’s what it said when I looked it up.” He laughed a little.

“What was your Anima Flamma color?” Wonpil asked.

“The Seers had said before it disappeared, it was a red-gold color, meaning prestigious and wise.” Seungmin said.

“What’s it like, being able to see everyone’s Anima Flamma?” Wonpil was practically bouncing, he was so excited. Seungmin smiled, opening one of the packets of candies Wonpil had gotten for him.

“It’s a lot, honestly. You remember when I had constant headaches for a month?” Wonpil nodded. “There are so many varying colors for each person, and sometimes it was really hard on my eyes. That’s why I ended up getting glasses.” Seungmin gestured towards the glasses he was wearing.

“I just thought you had bad eyes,” Wonpil laughed, and Seungmin laughed with him. Wonpil’s stomach rumbled, and they looked at one another for a moment, and started laughing again.

“I was planning on ordering fried chicken, because you would complain about my cooking not being as good as Auntie’s.” Wonpil smiled, and Seungmin pulled out his phone to order.

After ordering, Wonpil had found his way to Seungmin’s room and was rearranging his albums. Seungmin watched from where he was sitting cross-legged on the bed.

“I liked them the way they were before,” Seungmin pouted, and Wonpil shook his head.

“The way you had them before wasn’t showing them all properly,” Wonpil explained, picking one up, and placing it in front of the others. Seungmin sighed, flopping down on his bed. Wonpil flopped down next to Seungmin, and they laid there.

“If we could paint the rooms, the ceiling would be covered in constellations,” Seungmin said, and Wonpil hummed in agreement. They laid there a while longer, enjoying each other’s company.

-

After they ate the chicken and Seungmin had safely put away the candy, they decided to walk around the campus.  _ “It’s no fun to be stuck in a dorm all day, Minnie,” Wonpil had said. “I challenge you to try something new each day,” He added with a grin.  _ Seungmin led Wonpil to the Performing Arts building, knowing exactly where he wanted to go.

“Where are we going?” Wonpil asked in a whisper, his mask on again.

“Just follow me,” Seungmin said, exasperated. He may have lost track of where he was supposed to go once or twice, but who needed to know that? He finally recognized the side hallway, and ducked into it, Wonpil following. Seungmin walked to the door at the end, peeking inside to make sure nobody else was in it. When Seungmin had made sure it was empty, he opened the door, ushering Wonpil inside.

The light switch flicked on, and Wonpil let out a, “Wow,” at the piano still in the same place, and the chairs still stacked up on the wall.

“I’m not totally a lost case, hyung. I’ve been doing stuff,” Seungmin said smugly, and Wonpil gave him a look, taking off his mask.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Wonpil said, sitting down at the piano bench, and Seungmin sitting next to him. He was suddenly filled with a sense of deja vu.

-

_ “Seungmin, Wonpil’s here!” His mother called, and six-year-old Seungmin ran from where he was coloring at the table. He gave his cousin a hug, and smiled up at him. His twelve-year-old cousin, Wonpil, looked down at him, smiling. He ruffled Seungmin’s hair and took his hand. _

_ “What are we doing today, hyung?” Seungmin asked, and Wonpil led him to the piano, pulled Seungmin up onto the bench with him. _

_ “I’m teaching you piano!” Wonpil declared, and Seungmin giggled. _

-

“Hey, Minnie, whatcha thinking about?” Wonpil said, waving a hand in front of Seungmin’s eyes. Seungmin did nothing but smile at him, and laid his hands on the lower half of the keys, and started to play the beginning measures of a duet. Wonpil caught on quickly, and started to play the  _ primo _ part of the song.

After they finished the duet, Seungmin laid his head on Wonpil’s shoulder. “I’m glad to have you here, hyung,” He said, and Wonpil ruffled his hair.

“You’re too soft for your own good, Minnie,” Wonpil said fondly.

-

Seungmin opened the door to his door to his dorm, giggling at a joke Wonpil had told him. He ushered Wonpil inside, and stopped when he saw Felix sitting at the kitchen table, eating some chips. Felix looked up, and his eyes went wide.

“Hi Wonpil-ssi,” Felix said, awkwardly getting up and bowing. Seungmin exchanged an amused glance with Wonpil.

“You don’t need to call me Wonpil-ssi, Felix. That makes me seem so old,” Wonpil sighed, and Seungmin smiled. “Just call me Wonpil-hyung,” Felix glanced between Seungmin and Wonpil, then nodded and sat down to continue eating his chips. Wonpil sat down on the couch, Seungmin following him.

“Why didn’t you decide to go here for voice, Minnie?” Wonpil asked. “You could turn out better than me if you work hard.”

“Me? Better than you? Hyung, we both know that’s not true,” Seungmin argued back. “Besides, you’re my favorite singer.”

“You’re only saying that because I’m your cousin.”

“That’s not true! Seriously, I’m not lying. Look at my eyes.”

“I don’t think he’s lying, Wonpil-hyung,” Felix called out from the table. “You should see the little smile he gets when he texts you.” Wonpil turned to Seungmin with a smile.

“Aw, my Minnie missed me!” And Seungmin didn’t have time to process anything before Wonpil was hugging him.

“I’m not a baby, hyung,” Seungmin grumbled, pouting. Felix snickered from his seat, and Seungmin glared at him. “Don’t make me put my wrath upon you,” He warned, and Felix stopped laughing, but the grin was still visible on his face.

“Oh, that reminds me!” Wonpil said, letting go of Seungmin and going to Seungmin’s room. He came back out with a signed copy of one of Day6’s albums, and handed it to Felix. “Seungmin told me you were a MyDay, and I couldn’t resist getting one for you. And Minnie said you were a good person, and any good person in his book is a good person in my book,” he added, smiling at Felix who was looking between Wonpil and Seungmin with wide eyes.

“I-I can’t accept this! It’s too much!” Felix exclaimed, but the way he grasped the album said otherwise. Wonpil smiled again, and Seungmin felt a slight pang of jealousy in his chest.  _ It’s so easy for him to be friendly to everyone, why can’t I do that? I do practically everything he does, anyway. _ Seungmin tore his gaze away so he didn’t betray anything to his cousin.

“Just accept it, Felix. I do this to Minnie all of the time,” Seungmin nodded when Felix looked his way.

“It’s true. He tries to visit me every time he has a comeback, and shoves a signed album into my hands. Wonpil-hyung never lets me refuse it.” Wonpil laughs a little at Seungmin’s comment.

“That’s so cool. You two seem so close, like you’re actually brothers.” Felix said in awe. Seungmin got a little shy, as Wonpil ruffled his hair. He spared a glance at Felix, who had an unreadable expression on his face. Seungmin felt something hurt in his heart, and he frowned, trying to pinpoint the feeling.

“Well, I did know him since he was in diapers,” Wonpil said, and Seungmin looked at him sharply.

“If you tell him anything…” He warned. Wonpil gave him a sly smile, and turned back to Felix.

“When he was a kid, he ate an entire container of Play-Doh thinking it was cookie dough.” Wonpil blurted out, before dissolving into giggles with Felix. Seungmin sat on the couch, glaring at Wonpil. He glanced over at Felix, who had a massive grin on his face, and Seungmin felt his cheeks heat up.  _ What’s up with you, Seungmin? _

“Once, Wonpil-hyung snuck out of his house to go star-gazing, but he fell asleep outside. He ended up sleepwalking into the woods and was lost for half a day. The police sent out an entire helicopter looking for him.” Seungmin said smugly, and Wonpil’s ears went red as he glared at Seungmin. Felix dissolved into another fit of giggles, and Seungmin smiled at him.

“Speaking of stargazing, when was the last time you went stargazing?” Wonpil asked him, and Seungmin looked away, ashamed.

“It’s been a while…” He admitted, and Wonpil gasped.

“You haven’t been stargazing since I last took you when you were in your junior year? You poor thing, what have you been doing?” Wonpil sat next to Seungmin and hugged him. “Don’t worry, Minnie. I’m here to rescue you from yourself.” Seungmin laughed a little, and wiggled out of Wonpil’s hug.

“You can go stargazing with me tonight, hyung,” Seungmin said, smiling, but Wonpil’s face fell.

“I’m sorry, Minnie. I have to leave soon.” Seungmin frowned.

“Maybe Seungmin and I could go stargazing? I may know a good place,” Felix suggested. Seungmin looked at Felix, surprised.  _ Stargazing? With Felix?  _ He glanced at Wonpil, who smiled again.

“That’s a great idea! Why don’t you two go do that now, since I need to go?” Wonpil seemed a little too excited with the idea, as he gathered his stuff. He put his shoes and mask on, and turned to Seungmin. “Come here, Minnie,” He said, opening his arms. Seungmin got up and gave him a tight hug. 

“I’m gonna miss you, hyung,” Seungmin said quietly.

“Aw, don’t cry Minnie,” Seungmin could almost hear Wonpil smile. He added in a quiet whisper, “And your secret is safe with me. I will never tell anybody.” He gave Seungmin one last squeeze, and pulled away.

“See you around, Felix,” Wonpil said, and left the dorm. The door closed behind him and they sat there for a second.  _ I’m really going to miss him,  _ Seungmin thought. The last time he had seen Wonpil was last summer, after he finished junior year.

Seungmin sniffed a little, and quickly wiped his eyes, not looking at Felix purposely.  _ Don’t cry in front of your roommate, Seungmin. That’s embarrassing. _ He collected his emotions and somehow willed the tears away. He looked at Felix, who was looking at Seungmin with sadness in his eyes.

“Um, since we’re going outside, we’ll need to dress warm and bring blankets. It gets pretty cold at night.” Seungmin made his way to his room and grabbest two blankets and a small pillow, and placed them in a bag. He put on his warmest hoodie and grabbed a beanie, putting it on. He walked to the dorm door, where Felix was waiting with a smile.

“Let’s go!” Felix said with a smile, opening the door and ushering Seungmin through. Seungmin waited next to Felix, heading towards the staircase, but frowned when Felix started going up instead of down.

“Are we allowed on the roof?” Seungmin asked, and Felix grinned at him.

“Not really, but I know a way to get up there without being caught,” Seungmin shrugged, and followed Felix up the stairs. When they got to the top, Felix slowly opened the door labeled ‘Do Not Enter’ and Seungmin held his breath, waiting for an alarm to go off. When no alarm sounded, Felix opened the door all of the way, smiling at Seungmin.

“Did you really think an alarm was going to go off?” Felix joked, and Seungmin shrugged, stepping onto the roof. The cool air bit at his cheeks, but the view was worth it.

“Wow…” Seungmin breathed, walking to the chain fence on the edge of the building. He looked out over the city, marveling at all of the lights. He felt Felix’s presence near him, and looked over to him with a smile.

“How did you find this?” Seungmin asked.

“Chan-hyung and Minho-hyung found it one day when a party was held up here. The party got busted, but we found our new hangout spot, other than Hyunjin-hyung’s house, which is  _ huge, _ by the way.”

Felix laid out his blanket on the ground, and after sitting, patted the ground next to him. “Sit, down, Seungminnie. You’re not going to enjoy stargazing if you stand.” Seungmin felt the tips of his ears go red, and was glad they were hidden by the beanie. He sat down next to Felix, and nearly jumped as Felix gently took his fingers in his hand.

“Is this okay? I sometimes get anxious without some sort of contact,” Felix explained, smiling shyly. Seungmin nodded, hoping that his cheeks weren’t as red as they seemed. Seungmin moved his gaze to the sky, and his breath was taken away again.

The stars were twinkling in the sky, multitudes of them. There weren’t as many as there would be in the country, but they were in the city with light pollution.

Seungmin instantly recognised several constellations, and his searching eyes found more quickly. He continued to stare up at the sky, not pausing until there was a slight squeeze on his hand. Seungmin looked over at Felix, who was staring at him.

“You good, Seungminnie? You zoned out for a bit back there,” Felix said, and Seungmin nodded.

“It’s been so long since I’ve last stargazed,” Seungmin admitted quietly. “I used to do it all of the time as a kid, but recently I really don’t. It kind of feels like I’m a kid again…” He trailed off, thinking.

As a child, he was told that making his parents happy and proud would bring him happiness.  _ But did it really?  _ Seungmin was always striving to be the best child, having good grades and being obedient that he completely forgot about  _ his own happiness. _ All those nights trying to get everything done for his parents weren’t fun, and they didn’t bring him happiness. And every time he gained a good grade only gave him a sense of relief, because then his parents wouldn’t be mad at him.

When he had told his parents he was going to a totally different college, they were furious, and Seungmin should’ve felt scared. Instead, he felt like he was flying. Going against his parents and doing what he wanted to do brought  _ him happiness.  _ Maybe that’s what Wonpil wanted Seungmin to realise by going stargazing. That’s why he was always pushing Seungmin to do new things, and have fun with it.

“So, tell me about yourself,” Felix said. Seungmin glanced over at Felix, who’s freckles almost seemed to glow in the night.

“I came here for photography. My parents were against it, but oh well,” Seungmin said, thinking. What else did he know about himself? Nothing fun. His parents had locked him in a cage of working for them, and they didn’t let him out long enough to do things of his own. “I play piano and sing in my free time, and I like to draw.”

Drawing had been his outlet, a way to convey his true feelings. Whether it be the drawings of Animae Flammae, or scribbles that made sense to Seungmin, but his parents had frowned upon. Seungmin had thrown those drawings out, and with a pang of sadness, he now wished he hadn’t.

“You’re very artistic,” Felix said. “Why were your parents against it?”

“They wanted me to go to some fancy college and study law or become a doctor. And when I finally realised that their decisions weren’t right for me, it was already senior year,” Seungmin sighed. “How did you find your way here?”

“I’m here for dancing,” Felix started off, and took a slightly shaky breath. He squeezed Seungmin’s hand, and Seungmin squeezed back. “I hung out with my group of friends a lot junior year, after I had an accident. They kept me afloat then, and still do now. That’s why I regard them as my family.”

Seungmin stayed silent.  _ If that’s you regard family, then who is my family?  _ A smiling face popped up in his mind.  _ Wonpil. _

“Is that what family really is? People who support you no matter what?” Seungmin asked, looking at Felix.

“That’s who your true family is. Someone who always lifts you up and helps when you need it. You can count on them to keep a secret, and they can tell you theirs. They’ll be there always, no matter how small or large the problem is.”

Seungmin laid still, breathing lightly.  _ I guess I was wrong with the definition of family all along. _ He shivered as a light gust of wind blew over them, and Felix scooted closer to him. Seungmin froze, and once again hoped his cheeks weren’t burning up.

“Sharing body heat will keep you warm, Seungie.” Felix said quietly, and Seungmin looked at him.

“Do you normally give people nicknames?” Seungmin asked, and Felix giggled a little.

“Yeah, it helps me remember people better.”

Seungmin hummed in acknowledgement, and looked back up to the sky. He saw the constellation Circinus, and smiled a little as remembered its name.  _ Compass. _

He soon drifted off to sleep, lulled by Felix’s breathing and the distant sounds of city life.


	7. occurre - to meet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seungmin meets Chan, Minho, and Jeongin. And does he view Felix as more than just a roommate?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhhhh hello everyone! I'm terribly sorry that I took forever to update, so here's 4k! School has been kicking my butt and I did lost motivation for a bit, but I'm back! Winter break is approaching soon, so I should be able to start updating weekly again! Again, I'm sorry for the delay, and have fun reading!
> 
> Anima Flamma - Soul Flame

The combination of warm sunlight and hushed voices woke Seungmin. He blinked tiredly, groaning when his back twinged in pain as he sat up, rubbing his eyes. The hushed voices stopped, and Seungmin blinked a few more times, trying to get to his bearings.

The first thing he noticed was that he was still on the roof.  _ Oh shit, did I fall asleep up here?  _ He panicked, and sat up a little too fast, causing three figures to turn towards him.

One of them was Felix, his hair a little messed up from sleep. He smiled, and Seungmin smiled a little back. He then turned his attention towards the other two males.

One had auburn colored hair, and his cat-like eyes were fixed upon Seungmin with a gaze that made him squirm a little. The strangest part about him was his royal purple Anima Flamma. Instead of being a flame shape, the flames took shapes of animals, flickering from one to the next.

The other male had silver hair and his sweet smile was trained on Seungmin. The only thing that didn’t fit him was his color choice for clothing. It was nearly all black, the only pop of color being a design on his shirt and his white shoes. His Anima Flamma was also unique. Instead of being a color, it was completely clear, other than a streak of royal purple and one of electric blue and black.

“Meet my friends, Chan-hyung and Minho-hyung!” Felix said excitedly. Seungmin glanced at the two, looking back at Felix. He seemed happy, leaning against the silver-haired male’s shoulder.

“I’m Chan, and this is Minho.” The silver-haired male, Chan, said. Minho nodded his head in greeting. Seungmin smiled back at the two of them.

“How long was I asleep, Felix?” Seungmin asked, pulling his phone out of his hoodie pocket. He had two messages, one from Wonpil and another from his mother. He sighed, noticing the battery percentage.

“Not for too long after I woke up. Maybe half an hour, at most?” Felix said, poking Minho, who poked him back in return.

“Okay,” Seungmin said, and sat there for a second.  _ You should probably just leave now, before it gets too awkward. _ Seungmin stretched a bit more, and then stood up and folded up his blanket. “I’m gonna go take a shower, Lixie. You can invite your friends over if you want to.” Seungmin finished folding his blanket, and smiled at Felix as he left the rooftop.

As Seungmin closed the door behind him, he hesitated. He ever so slightly felt like listening to what they were saying. As he put his ear against the gap, he heard someone who sounded like Minho say,

“I don’t like him. He seems untrustworthy,” There was a scuffling sound, and another person spoke up.

“Don’t be so judgemental, Minho-hyung. He’s new, you barely like new people,” Felix said, and Seungmin could nearly hear the pout in his voice.

“I’m with Lino on this one, ‘Lix,” Chan said. “I may not dislike him, but there is something off about him.” Felix sighed angrily.

“Just give Seungminnie a chance, will you? He’s a nice guy, he just doesn’t really warm up that easily.”

Seungmin left before he could hear anything else he wasn’t supposed to.

-

After taking a much-needed shower and lying in bed for a while, Seungmin felt the need to do something. He decided to open up Wonpil’s message.

**person i tolerate (2)**

**annoying cousin**

did you have fun, minnie?

**Seungminnie <3**

yeah, it was nice

Seungmin took a deep breath, preparing to open the text from his mother. She was most likely reminding him to eat or telling him about something he forgot at home. He sighed and opened their chat.

**Mother, Seungmin (2)**

**Mother**

Seungmin, you forgot your favorite sweater back at home. The baby blue one?

I can bring it to your dorm for you.

**Seungmin**

No need, I can stop by home next weekend and pick it up.

**Mother**

I’m already heading over to your college, Seungmin. It’s GreenWood University, right?

**Seungmin**

Yes, it is. I’ll meet you by the main gate.

Seungmin sighed, staring up at his ceiling again. What was he going to say to her, after his realization last night?  _ “Oh yeah, by the way, I realized that you aren't my true family because you don’t support me?”  _ His mother would not react well to that.  _ Maybe you should just keep quiet, and act like you’re mad about them not supporting your choice of college. _

Seungmin sighed again. He hated having to make decisions. As a kid, his parents made the decisions for him. Now that he was older and on his own, he felt lost most of the time.

A shout and loud thump interrupted his inner turmoil, and Seungmin sat up, deciding it was time to get up. Walking out of his room, he was surprised by Felix running towards him, with Minho following behind. Felix hid behind Seungmin, and Seungmin looked at Felix bemusedly.

“I can’t really help you with this, Felix. Minho could knock me over like a bowling pin if he wanted,” Seungmin smiled sweetly before pushing Felix towards Minho, who laughed as he grabbed Felix in a hug, his Anima Flamma flickering to the shape of a bear.

“Minnie, how could you do that to me?” Felix pouted.

“Felix, I had to. It was either you and me, or just you. I had to choose the easy way out,” Seungmin said, laughing a little. “Besides, my mom is bringing me some stuff I forgot at home and I need to go meet her at the front gate.” Felix nodded.

As he was about to leave, someone came up from behind him and gave him a hug. Seungmin guessed it was Felix, and sighed softly. He really wasn’t a huge fan of hugs.

“See you later, Minnie!” Felix said, and Seungmin’s heart performed a backflip as he waved goodbye to Felix. He just hoped he was able to close the door before his ears went red.

-

The autumn cold was slowly making its way into the weather, and it bit at Seungmin’s nose. His fingers were protected, hiding in his jacket pockets. He had been standing by the gates for around ten minutes, and was just about ready to get a coffee, when he heard a voice say,

“Seungmin!” Seungmin turned to see his mother walking towards him, with a bag in her hand. Her light indigo Anima Flamma bobbing up and down. She reached him, the height difference between them more noticeable, and gave Seungmin a hug, which he awkwardly returned.  _ Is she just going to pretend we didn’t say those things to one another?  _ Seungmin wondered, smiling at her as they pulled away.

“So, how has my favorite son been?” His mother asked, and Seungmin had to stifle a thought- _ I’m your only son _ \- before smiling and responding.

“Classes haven’t started yet, so I’m just trying to get used to the campus. Wonpil-hyung stopped by the other day, and that was fun.” Seungmin didn’t miss the frown that appeared on his mother’s face, before it turned into a smile.

“That’s good,” His mother said, and there was a brief pause. “Would you possibly want to go grab a coffee with me? My treat,” She added with a wink. Seungmin contemplated it. He really did want a coffee, but he also didn’t want to talk to his mother more than he had to.

“Sorry, mother, but I can’t. I promised my roommate I would help him with dinner, and I don’t really like breaking promises,” Seungmin crossed his fingers from where he put them back in his pockets, and hoped that she would buy it. After a little, his mother sighed.

“Alright, I shouldn’t keep you from your roommate’s demands,” She said, handing Seungmin the bag. “I packed some food for you to eat, because I know you’ll get homesick,” She hugged Seungmin one more time, and Seungmin slightly hesitated before hugging her back.

“Goodbye, Minnie. Do well, okay?” Seungmin waved as his mom walked away, and let that hand drop as soon as she turned the corner.  _ Goodness, that was hard. _ He made his way back to the dorms, so deep in thought, he accidentally bumped into someone, the two of them falling.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” Seungmin said, quickly getting up and extending a hand to the stranger, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, I am so sorry-”

“It’s fine,” the stranger said, and Seungmin got a good look at him. His aqua blue hair was what popped at him first, and his large grin and dimples was the second thing he noticed. His rose-pink Anima Flamma was actually less interesting than the male himself, its subdued rose pink color contrasting with his hair and cheery demeanor. “I wasn’t looking out either,” He laughed a little, and Seungmin allowed himself a smile, helping the other male up.

“I’m Seungmin,” He said, and the male’s eyes widened a bit, before he laughed a little.

“I’m Jeongin,” Jeongin said, and Seungmin had a memory flashback to Felix introducing his friends.  _ “And Jeongin is a freshman like us, except he’s a year younger than us and super smart. He acts like he hates us, but deep inside, his heart is full of love.”  _ Seungmin blinked, and laughed.

“You’re Jeongin, Felix’s friend,” Seungmin said, and Jeongin laughed.

“And you’re Seungmin, Felix’s roommate,” Jeongin said. “Wow, this is funny. Who would’ve thought I would meet you before ‘Lix introduced us to one another!”

“That’s quite funny,” Seungmin agreed, and Jeongin grabbed him by the arm, and led him up the stairwell. “Where are we going?” Seungmin asked, wanting to get his arm out of Jeongin’s grasp.

“To go show ‘Lix that we met before he introduced us to one another!” Jeongin continued up the stairs, pausing to only flash another smile. They reached the third floor, and Jeongin paused before entering Seungmin’s dorm. He released Seungmin’s arm, before turning to Seungmin.

“Okay, we got this.” Jeongin said, and Seungmin unlocked the door, and Jeongin burst in, yelling, “What’s up bitches!”

“Jeongin, language!” Someone yelled from inside, and Seungmin entered. Chan was sitting on the couch, and Felix and Minho were nowhere to be seen. “Wait, Jeongin, how did you get in? You didn’t pick the lock- oh, Seungmin let you in.”

“Chan-hyung, why do you scold me for cursing when Minho curses all the time?” Jeongin flopped on the couch opposite to Chan. Chan sighed, and Seungmin walked to the kitchen with his bag. He pulled out the food his mother gave him as Jeongin and Chan continued their conversation behind him.

“Minho does what he wants, I can’t stop him,” Chan said, “If I can’t stop him from falling love with me, I can’t stop him from cursing.”

“Just say you’re going to deprive him of kisses each time he curses, duh.”

“I would never kiss him at that point. You should hear him ranting about the jerk people at that coffee place, I’m surprised he hasn’t been fired.” Jeongin hummed in agreement. “Hang on, stop trying to turn the conversation away from you cursing!”

Seungmin finished putting the food away and sat down on the couch next to Jeongin and Chan. “Minnie,” Jeongin said, “Tell Channie-hyung to let me curse, please?”

“I’m not the parent Jeongin, Chan-hyung is. You gotta listen to him,” Seungmin said with a smile, and Jeongin burst out in laughter, while Chan’s ears went red. “By the way, where’s Minho-hyung and Felix?”

“They went to Felix’s room a bit ago, I think,” Chan was now looking at his laptop, Jeongin looking over his shoulder. Seungmin got up to head over to Felix’s door, and knocked on the door.

“I should’ve guessed it was you, Minnie!” Felix opened the door, smiling. “No one else would have knocked.” He ushered Seungmin into his room, and flopped face-first onto the bed, where Minho was sitting, looking at something. Seungmin sat down on the edge of the bed, where Felix patted for him to sit.

“Hey, I knock!” Minho protested. Felix lightly slapped him, and Minho hit him back.

“Yeah, and then barge in,” Felix said, and Seungmin sat down cross-legged on the bed.

“What were you two doing here, anyways?” Seungmin asked. “You were way too quiet.” Felix laughed a little, and Seungmin’s heart did a cartwheel.

“I got Minho-hyung to quiet down by letting him look at some scrapbooks of me,” Felix said, smiling, and Minho laughed.

“Seungmin, look at this one!” Minho held up the scrapbook, pointing to a photo of someone who looked like a miniature version of Felix, with brown hair instead of blonde.

“Minho-hyung, no! I forbid you to show Seungminnie any baby photos of me!” Felix leapt at Minho, obviously intent on getting the scrapbook, but Minho jumped up and ran out of the room. Felix shouted, running after Minho, and Seungmin got up, following the two.

Minho had somehow hidden himself behind Chan, and Felix was standing in front of the couch, a pout on his lips. Jeongin was sitting at the kitchen table, eating a snack while playing a game on his phone. Seungmin took a seat next to Jeongin, tapping his shoulder.

“What’s up, Minnie?” Jeongin asked, not looking up.

“Does stuff like this happen normally?” Seungmin asked, pointing towards where Chan, Minho, and Felix were. Chan’s clear Anima Flamma held streaks of purple, electric blue and black, and now a rose gold color.

“Yeah, all the time. It’s worse at Jinnie’s house, they don’t have to control their noise level.” Jeongin glanced up from his game this time, fixing the others with a glance. “You should come with us sometime, it’ll be fun!”

Seungmin smiled apologetically. “Sorry, Jeongin, but I’m not a huge people person.”

“Oh, neither am I, but here I am. Given endless hugs and love, for all of eternity,” Jeongin sighed dramatically.

“You’re confusing.” Seungmin said, and Jeongin laughed.

“Jeongin, how did you get in?” Felix asked from where he was on the couch, scrapbook in hand. “Please don’t tell me you picked the lock. I swear to goodness, I’m going to kill Jisung for him teaching you that,”

“No, Seungminnie let me in! We ran into each other, and I decided that I would crash your party. I even yelled  _ ‘What’s up bitches’ _ as I came in, it was so fun!” He smiled sweetly, and Seungmin heard a sigh. Probably Chan.

“Innie, if you keep cursing, I’m going to give you a hug for every curse you say,” Chan said, and Jeongin gasped.

“Please don’t, Chan-hyung,” Jeongin said, and Minho giggled, his Anima Flamma now in the form of a cat.

“You always act like you hate them Jeonginnie, why is that?” Felix asked from where he sat at Chan’s feet.

“Because hugs are constricting! They enter my personal bubble and make me uncomfortable,” Jeongin huffed. Felix laughed, and Seungmin’s heart did a cartwheel.  _ His laugh is really pretty, _ he thought, before shaking his head.

-

Seungmin sat on the couch, playing a game on his phone. Chan had decided that he would  _ “Feed the hungry children”  _ and was now making dinner. Felix sat next to him, watching him play a game, while Jeongin was sitting on the other couch. Minho was in the kitchen with Chan, although it seemed he was distracting Chan more than he was helping cook, giving him kisses every once in a while. The atmosphere was calm, and had an air of domesticity.

It reminded Seungmin of when his parents and him would sit in their living room, eating dinner while watching a movie.  _ “Here you go, pumpkin,”  _ his mother would always say, handing him a plate of food. The food was always warm, and it never failed to make Seungmin happy. The movies were really fun, but those movie nights stopped as he got older. He sighed wistfully.

“Seungminnie, you zoned out again,” Felix said, and Seungmin snapped back to the present. He looked at Felix, who was poking his arm. “You really need to stop doing that, Minnie,” Felix was frowning a little, and Seungmin felt like kissing the frown off his face.  _ Wait, what? _ Seungmin knocked the thought out of his head.  _ Come on, Seungmin. You can’t think about kissing your roommate. That’s just weird. _ Seungmin smiled at Felix, poking his nose, and Felix frowned at him even more.

“Why’d you do that?” Felix asked, and Seungmin shrugged. He then felt Felix poke his side, and he squeaked. All eyes turned to him, and Seungmin felt his ears burn. He hid his face in his hands, not wanting to see the looks on their faces. “Seungminnie, you’re so cute,” Felix said, hugging him. Seungmin glanced at Felix, who had a smile on his face.

A bout of laughter in the kitchen distracted him from Felix, though. Minho was giggling while Chan was hiding his laughter behind a hand.

“That was really cute, Seungmin,” Minho said in between giggles. Jeongin voiced his agreement, while Chan went back to cooking. Seungmin relaxed after a while, and continued playing his game, Felix’s head resting on his shoulder.

-

“Pst,” Someone was whispering into Seungmin’s ear, and he blinked groggily, before yawning and looking to see who had whispered to him. It was Felix, smiling with a dangerous glint in his eyes. “Do you wanna prank Chan-hyung with me?” Seungmin thought for a second before nodding. Felix’s smile grew, and he stood up, motioning for Seungmin to follow him. Felix held up his bedroom door, and Seungmin followed him in, seeing Jeongin already sitting on Felix’s chair.

“Wow, you really got Seungminnie to join us. He seemed too much like a goody-two shoes to me,” Jeongin said, fidgeting with a bracelet. Felix laughed a little, sitting down on his bed, and Seungmin sat next to him.

“Your first look at a person is sometimes wrong, Jeongin. Do you remember what you first thought of me?” Felix asked with a smile, and Jeongin laughed.

“Yeah, I thought you were some fuckboy,” Jeongin smiled. Felix laughed, and Seungmin smiled. “Anyways, what’s our plan to mess with Chan-hyung?”

“Seungmin, remember that hot sauce me and Jisung made that on Thursday?” Felix asked, and Jeongin’s eyes went wide.

“You would not,” Jeongin breathed, a wicked grin coming across his face. Felix nodded, sporting the same look. Seungmin blinked.

“I don’t get it,” He said, and Jeongin giggled.

“Chan-hyung cannot handle spicy things at  _ all _ ,” Jeongin said, and Seungmin understood completely. Based off of Jisung’s red face that day, Chan was not going to survive. “And Minho would be too busy laughing and trying to help Chan to be mad at us.”

“I was thinking Jeongin and I would create a distraction while Seungminnie could slip the hot sauce into his food.” Felix looked to the both of them, as if asking for confirmation that they could do this. Jeongin nodded, and Seungmin agreed as well.

-

The three decided that Jeongin would leave first, and Seungmin and Felix would stay behind until it was time to eat dinner. Felix and Seungmin were laying on Felix’s bed, and Felix was showing him photos of three cats that Minho had snuck into the dorms.

Felix put his phone down, and laid his head on Seungmin’s chest. Seungmin froze, not expecting the sudden contact, but relaxed after getting used to the weight of Felix’s head. He sighed and closed his eyes, feeling warm and a little sleepy.

“You look cute when you’re relaxed,” Felix mumbled, barely audible, and Seungmin opened his eyes to see Felix looking at him, smiling softly. Seungmin felt a rush in his heart, and he smiled as well.

“You’re cute as well,” Seungmin found himself saying, and Felix’s cheeks went pink, and Seungmin felt his ears go red. “Sorry,” He mumbled, “That just slipped out of my mouth,”

“No, it’s okay,” Felix said, and they laid there in silence for a bit, and then he mumbled shyly, “Is it okay if I hold your hand?” Seungmin nodded, and Felix gently linked their fingers together. His hand felt small against Seungmin’s, and he lifted their joined hands up, giggling at how small Felix’s looked.

“Your hand is so small,” Seungmin said, and Felix huffed.

“Everyone teases me for it,” he grumbled.

“I think it’s cute,” Seungmin said, and Felix’s cheeks went red. He lowered their hands, and they laid in silence for a bit.

All of the sudden, Felix’s bedroom door opened, and Minho walked in, and froze as he saw Felix and Seungmin. Seungmin froze up, and Felix’s cheeks went red again. He blinked once, then walked back out.

“I guess that’s our cue to go eat dinner,” Felix awkwardly said with a strained laugh, letting go of Seungmin’s hand and getting up. Seungmin sat up as well, and they headed to the kitchen, where Minho was talking to Chan at the table, while Jeongin was listening amusedly on the counter.

“-I’m telling you, they were laying there like-” Minho cut off as the two of them entered, and he narrowed his eyes at Felix. “Okay young man, you have some explaining to do. What’s up between you two?” Seungmin and Felix glanced at one another, then looked away quickly. Minho sighed, face palming. “You know what, explain later. Let’s eat.”

Seungmin and Felix quickly sat down, and they started eating. Seungmin noticed the bottle of hot sauce on the table, and patiently waited for Jeongin and Felix to create their distraction.

It came sooner than later, with Felix throwing a carrot at Jeongin. Jeongin screeched and yelled, “You little shit!” Felix giggled, and Chan sighed.

“Jeongin, you give me no choice but to hug you,” Jeongin gasped as Chan got up. While Chan chased Jeongin around, Seungmin quickly poured a little hot sauce on Chan’s food, and Felix shook his head.

“Minnie, you have to add more. That won’t do anything,” Felix said, taking the bottle from Seungmin and dumping a large amount of the bottle on Chan’s food, Jeongin’s squeaks of protest behind them. Minho looked up, and sighed.

“Mix the food around so he won’t see it,” Minho said, and Seungmin blinked. Minho shrugged, taking Chan’s fork and mixing the food around himself. “It’ll be funny to watch. He won’t die or be mortally wounded, so I’m okay with it.”

Chan returned with Jeongin following behind, his hair messed up. They both returned to their respective spots, and Seungmin watched with bated breath as Chan took a bite of his food. He glanced at Felix, who was trying not to smile, and waited for a reaction.

“Felix, what did you put in this?” Chan asked, frowning.

“The 3RACHA hot sauce me and Jisung made!” Chan’s eyes went wide, as Felix and Jeongin burst out laughing. Seungmin smiled, and Minho handed Chan a glass of milk, the latter quickly downing it.

“Felix, why?” Chan said, fanning his mouth, his face going red. Felix giggled again.

“Because it’s fun to see you suffer!” Seungmin laughed, and Felix joined him. Chan groaned, and Minho patted his back sympathetically.

-

After Chan finally stopped ‘dying,’ he decided that he didn’t trust Felix anymore and was going to head back to his own dorm. Minho tagged along with him, and Jeongin said that he didn’t want to be “stuck with the budding lovebirds,” a comment Seungmin and Felix both pointedly ignored.

Felix closed the door behind Jeongin, smiling as he turned towards Seungmin.

“That was so fun, Minnie! I’m glad you decided to help us with it!” Seungmin smiled.

“I’m glad that I was able to help, it was really fun,” he agreed, enjoying the way Felix’s face lit up. Seungmin sat down on the couch, realizing that classes start tomorrow. “Hey, Felix, classes start tomorrow.”

“Really?” Felix sat down next to Seungmin. “Time really flies, huh.” Seungmin hummed in agreement, pulling out his phone and checking the time of his classes.  _ Good, I don’t have to wake up till later. _ Felix yawned from where he was sitting next to Seungmin.

“You should get some sleep, ‘Lix. We have classes tomorrow,” Seungmin said, and Felix groaned.

“Don’t wanna get up,” He mumbled, and Seungmin sighed.

“Your neck will hurt if you sleep here,” He said, standing up and offering a hand to Felix. “Plus, we fell asleep on the roof yesterday, and that’s not the most comfortable place to sleep.” Felix opened his eyes, and grabbed Seungmin’s hand, standing up. Seungmin walked to his bedroom, and paused before closing the door. “Goodnight, Felix,” Felix sleepily smiled back at him.

“Night, Minnie.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, welcome to the end notes! I hope you enjoyed!
> 
> Just a daily reminder (for myself and for you): you got this!! not everything will be okay, and that's alright! just do you!
> 
> Stay safe, wherever you are!


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